Sanctuary
by the.silly.banana.muffin
Summary: Cloud's heart skipped a beat. Did she really just say it? Did she mean it? He looked down. When he saw the look in her eyes...he knew. Cloti. A songfic. with Utada Hikaru's song, "Sanctuary". Rated T for safety. Set about a month after Advent Children.
1. Sleepless Night

_In you and I_

_There's a new land_

_My sanctuary, my sanctuary, yeah_

_Where fears and lies melt away_

Two cobalt-colored eyes stared into the dark; set upon the small, digitally-displayed time blaring from across the room atop a small table.

1:34.

_Wonderful._

This night couldn't be possibly going any slower. Not only was the stress from traveling half-way across the continent just to drop off a few packages keeping the blonde warrior up; but the lumpy bed on which his body rested jabbed his figure and caused his whole body to ache.

He should call. She was usually up this hour, still.

But she was going to be mad. She was the one who told him not to take these clients—to take some time off. However, the concept of a _vacation_ was foreign to him. And now he wasn't even sure if she would wish to speak to him, especially at this hour.

Too late. His fingers were already cradling the small, black phone in his palm. They readily punching the the familiar number and hit the 'talk' button. The line rang three times before there was a beep and a click.

"...Hello, this is the Seventh Heaven. Tifa Lockhart speaking. Can I help you?" Her voice was strained and she sounded overall exhausted.

_What's left of me?_

_What's left of me, now?_

"It's me," His own voice cracked as he nervously cleared his throat. "Is everything alright?"

"Cloud?" Tifa seemed perplexed. After all, it was strange for the delivery boy to call, let alone this late at night.

"Yeah..." The blonde pulled the phone away from his ear slightly; just waiting for her to begin yelling at him for bothering her.

There was a long pause. "...Everything's fine. Why?"

Cloud blinked. Tifa must have already closed the bar—it was almost silent in the background. When replying to her question, he stammered. "I...I thought you were mad at me."

"Why would you think that?" She laughed softly, although it sounded forced.

"You told me not to go to Kalm for these deliveries," his voice fell quiet. "...But I went anyways." He sounded like a child confessing to his mother that he had done something wrong.

The barmaid paused again, but after a moment her voice filled the speaker once again. "...I'm not mad, Cloud."

Maybe they should talk about this at home. But he wasn't going to be home for at least another week—and this unheard anger and frustration needed to be taken care of _now_.

"...Cloud?"

He snapped out of his thoughts and looked around into the black of the inn room; as if expecting to find Tifa standing before him.

_I watch you fast asleep_

_All I fear means nothing_

"...I'm coming back." The words spilled out in an instant without the slightest bit of thought put into them.

Tifa said nothing.

Cloud looked back down at his phone, checking to make sure the call hadn't been lost. He pressed it against his ear harder than before.

"...What?" Tifa's voice no longer sounded tired and weary.

"I'll be home tonight," he was already standing from the uncomfortable bed and had his bag near fully-packed.

"There's no hurry, Cloud. Everything's going well here."

"...You sound tired."

"I am," Tifa sighed softly, chuckling. "...But it's been a long day."

Cloud rolled his eyes slightly. _I know the feeling_.

"You know it's dangerous to be traveling this late at night." Her words seemed rushed and concentrated specifically on him.

Cloud blinked. Of _course_-- It was simply her nature to worry. "...I've done it before."

The Seventh Heaven's line was completely silent for several minutes. "...I guess I'll see you soon."

Was Tifa honestly _trusting _him to be home by morning? Realization hit him, and he soon realized he was going to have to drive like mad in order to be in Edge on time...

Nibelhiem.

There was a shortcut through Nibelhiem.

Is that what she truly wanted? For him to go back and relive what happened years earlier? For him to remember his childhood? To remember what it was like to be close?

Or perhaps she just wanted him home sooner. That was more logical—Tifa wasn't one to hand out cryptic messages for people to solve.

That was Cloud's job, after all. The blonde's lips twitched slightly at this thought, and he threw his bag over his shoulder. In the end of it, he would be happy to just be able to sleep on a comfortable mattress. "I'll see you soon."

"...Bye."


	2. The Same Night Sky

Author's Note: Sorry about forgetting one of these in the last chapter...I'm just learning how to upload and edit these things from . ^^ I've written many fanfictions, however this is the first that has managed to get itself onto here, so I hope you enjoy it. I know that it seems that I have repeated "Sanctuary" from the first chapter, but actually I'm just carrying the song over from where I left off. There are about two more chapters that will be added very soon. Constructive critisism is greatly welcomed, but please no flames. Again--enjoy! :D

_In you and I_

_There's a new land_

_My sanctuary, my sanctuary, yeah_

_Where fears and lies melt away_

Tifa set the phone back down against the receiver for several moments.

Why did Cloud want to come home early? He only ever did that when he wasn't feeling well—and it took a lot to make him _that _sick. What was _so _important that he needed to come home now?

Or...perhaps it wasn't _needed_.

The barmaid smiled. Maybe he was finally beginning to realize that a break was necessary every once in a while. Maybe he figured out that the kids wanted him home.

Maybe he figured out that _she _wanted him home.

_What's left of me?_

_What's left of me, now?_

He might have just forgotten something. He was probably going to be gone again by tomorrow afternoon.

Tifa frowned.

Sure—he had been coming home on regular days a bit earlier than before the geostigma; but the long delivery trips were the same as they had been. And that was what bothered her the most. It was what bothered Denzel and Marlene more than anything, too.

"...Tifa?"

The young woman turned to see the small girl standing behind the corner of the landing. Her long braid had been unraveled and fell down to her back in a messy nest; telling Tifa that she had previously been sleeping. "...Yes?"

"Was that Cloud?"

Denzel's head popped out above hers, his own brown hair bunched and frizzed. His large, hopeful brown eyes waited patiently for an answer.

She knew that if she told them that he was coming home, they would get their hopes up—only to have them crushed when they discovered him gone again by mid-day. Nonetheless, she wasn't about to lie to them. Besides, Cloud was the only person that would be calling that late anyways. Hesitantly, she nodded.

Denzel grinned. "Is he okay?"

Tifa nodded again. She pushed a smile onto her face. "...He's coming home soon."

The young boy jumped out from behind Marlene and his smile grew even larger. "Can we stay up until he gets here?"

"It's already late, Denzel. And he won't be home for a little while."

"Where is he?"

Tifa leaned against the counter uncomfortably and let out a sigh. "Kalm."

Marlene folded her arms across her chest and frowned. "That's far away. Did he lie to us?"

"No, no," Tifa laughed lightly, more to herself than to the children. "Cloud's taking a shortcut."

"How long is it going to take for him to get here?"

_If he even comes back, _Tifa shrugged slightly. "...A few hours."

The two kids looked at one another.

"...Do you wanna wait, Marlene?"

The girl lowered her head, her frown deepening.

"It's okay if you don't," Denzel smiled and took her by the hand. "We can just wait until morning to see him"

Marlene looked up at Tifa. "...Goodnight, Tifa."

Tifa outstretched her arms in front of her. The children wrapped their own arms around her waist. She placed soft kisses on the tops of their heads, holding them tightly to her. "Love you, guys."

The two replied in unison. "Love you, too."

Tifa watched as the two young children trudged back up the stairs, still hand-in-hand. She eventually turned to the window and looked up into the night sky. The moon, the stars...

She knew that he was looking at the same sky, too.


	3. A Breakable Barrier

_My heart's a battleground_

The wind whipped at Cloud's body, the pain only numbed by the chilled, wintery air. Fenrir's engine was only able to drown out so much of the warrior's racing thoughts.

Why Nibelhiem, again?

_The shortcut,_Cloud sighed.

Tifa wasn't mad...but she was upset. He knew it hurt her—hurt the kids, but this is what he did. If someone needed something delivered, why not call Cloud Strife? After all, he hardly ever denied a customer.

That bothered her, too.

He pulled into the quiet town; his hometown. _Their _hometown.

Turning off his engine, Cloud threw his leg over the Fenrir's side. He made his way through the small, narrow alleys and past various, reconstructed homes until he was standing before the town center's water tower.

_I'm gonna get into SOLDIER and become as strong as the Great Sephiroth!_

Cloud frowned. What a joke...

He stepped closer.

_...Promise me something, Cloud._

He reached for the ladder, his hands resting upon the cool metal.

_Promise to come and save me whenever I'm in a pinch._

He placed his boot against the slightly infirm step, making sure as carefully pull himself up.

_I promise._

He leaned against the large water tank and let his head fall against the edge of it. His gaze fell upon the black sky, where the stars glittered and the moon provided white light that bathed Nibelhiem's landscape.

_You showed me_

_How to see that nothing is whole_

_And nothing is broken_

Was Tifa looking up at the same sky, too? Could she see what he was looking at? Did she know what he was thinking?

_We can fight this together._

Why was Tifa so willing to stand by his side? He still shut her out when things became heated and uncomfortable; and it prevented her from being able to talk about the things she wanted to with him. Even after defeated the Remnants and being cured of the geostigma; the barrier that stood between them remained.

Cloud lifted his head. There was the ghost of a smile, dancing on his lips.

Tifa must have known he was going to think about this.


	4. Sanctuary

The clock's ticking created the only sound in the empty bar as she sat at the first table; her eyes barely open as she struggled to keep herself awake. Cloud didn't tell her to wait for him...she should go to bed. He probably wasn't even going to show up.

_In you and I_

_There's a new land_

_My sanctuary, my sanctuary, yeah_

_Where fears and lies melt away_

An engine.

She lifted her head; her eyes scanned the road.

_Fenrir?_

A truck passed by. She frowned and placed her head back down into her arms, a heavy sigh escaping her lips. What _was _she doing, still downstairs? The only things tying her where she was sitting was Cloud, and what he had to say when he got home.

_If he got home,_ The barmaid grunted softly, closing her eyes.

_Sorry if I'm a little late._

She opened her wine-colored eyes again, quickly searching for a pair of electric-blue orbs in the dim light. There was nobody.

_It's fine._

Tifa's vision blurred as tears began to sting them.

_...You're here now—that's all that matters._

The flames consumed her heart as they did her town, her family, and her friends. And she didn't see him Not for nearly four years.

_I can't protect anyone. Not my family; not my friends. Nobody._

The lock mechanism clicked, and the bells above the door chimed softly as the door was pushed open. Heavy, slow footsteps thudded against the hardwood floor and came closer to her and stopped; just inches away from the table.

Tifa lifted her head. "...Cloud."

The blonde's deep blue eyes glimmered slightly in the moonlight, giving them an eerie glow. "...I'm home."

_I'm back._

The woman blinked. "...What did you forget?"

"Huh?"

Tifa rose to her feet and frowned. "You forgot something, right? It's rare that you come home early," She said it nonchalantly, which caught Cloud off-guard.

"I didn't forget anything," Cloud replied cautiously. He could see the anger burning in her auburn eyes. _Now _she was angry. He looked down to the ground and shifted uncomfortably on his feet. "...I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"I should have listened to you when you told me to take some time off."

"Why didn't you?" Tifa's voice fell soft and she sounded as if she were a dog that had been kicked too many times.

Cloud paused. He turned his head until he was looking her directly in the face. "...What's wro--"

"Everything." She nearly shouted, however her voice remained low enough to keep itself from resonating.

The two were silent as the tension began to build between the two of them.

"...I'll take tomorrow off if you'd like," Cloud's own voice was nearly a whisper.

Tifa folded her arms across her chest and drew back, as if she were trying to hide. "Do you know what I would like?"

He slowly nodded.

She clicked her tongue. "...I would like for you to actually care about me—about Marlene and Denzel."

_What's left of me?_

_What's left of me, now?_

...Did she actually say that?

Cloud's breath stopped in his throat. "...I-I do care about you and the kids--" The words suddenly struggled to roll from his tongue as his confidence waivered.

"You're _still _never home; and when you are, you're taking deliveries and mapping out routes," She turned her back away from him, desperately trying to avoid his gaze. Her voice cracked slightly. "...That doesn't seem like you care very much to me."

Cloud placed a hand on her shoulder and spun her back around before she could protest. The blonde moved forward until their faces were only inches apart, and his voice rose barely above a whisper. "You _know _I care about you," He stopped for a moment. "...I wouldn't let _anything _happen to you."

The looked him in the eyes. She soon became lost in their sapphire depths and she could see the guilt—the sadness that filled them. "Cloud..."

He kissed her.

Cloud _kissed _her.

Tifa froze as they stood there, in the middle of the Seventh Heaven.

Cloud pulled away and looked away, a soft blush growing on his cheeks. "...I...shouldn't have done that...I'm sor-"

"No," Tifa quickly grabbed his hand. She slowly leaned forward and pressed her lips against his, however his lingered there; longer than before. _Much _longer. Tifa slowly wrapped her arms around his neck and relaxed into him, a comfortable silence deafening the room.

The blonde drew back once again, but instead of turning away, he slid his arms around her waist and sighed. Tifa rested her head against his chest; a faint smile spreading across her face.

"I love you, Cloud..."

Cloud's heart skipped a beat. Did she just tell him that? Did she just tell him that she _loved _him?

Tifa knew that this is where she belonged. In Cloud's arms. They were her sanctuary, where she could go to whenever she needed to escape from the troubles of reality. And even if he was far away from her physically, she was _always _going to have him with her in her heart. This is where she planned to stay forever.

_My fears, my lies_

_Melt away..._

Cloud held her tighter to his body as a small, rare smile tugged upon his face. He closed his eyes and placed his chin atop of her head, his breath slowing and his thoughts stopping. "...I love you, Tifa."

And it was meant to be.

_--Sanctuary, Utada Hikaru_


End file.
